Not a joke

[oslo.livejournal.com]

Our country is facing a major threat from radical Islamic terrorism. We better get very smart, and very tough, FAST, before it is too late!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2015

The truth is that Trump is not a joke. His rhetoric serves his goal of attracting media attention and popular support and so is politically expedient. But his constant vilification of Syrians, Muslims, and other groups of people helps to mainstream that vilification, which will lead predictably to increased hatred, discrimination, and violence towards those groups of people. That's a pattern we've seen happening already in Europe - perhaps that's why the unsophisticated mouth-breathers over in T_P think it's just hilarious - and it's a pattern that's increasingly visible here in the U.S. That's not a joke.

We might be reaching a point of Trump-saturation, with the media openly musing over its responsibility for creating and sustaining the Trump phenomenon, but the continuing attention to Trump's absurd and dangerous statements serves an important purpose. By continuing to shine a spotlight on their absurdity and, more importantly, their dangerous overtones, we equip ourselves with the rhetorical tools we need to combat the on-the-ground racism and xenophobia he's calling forth. We can say, for instance, that Trump's statements about Muslims trace ultimately from untrustworthy sources. That's what we have to do, to counteract Trump's influence. Treating him like a joke only makes him stronger and gives him the opportunity to distort political discourse further.

Comments

[enders-shadow.livejournal.com]

No he is not a joke. A number of Jews I know, some of whom had family flee Europe during the holocaust, are hesitant to use the word fascisms to describe US politicians.

They know what calling someone a Nazi or a fascist means. They were some of the first to tell me Trump was fascist, and even then, early in his campaign, I wasn't sure. Now it's undeniable and it's not funny.

It's made me honestly contemplate how I could leave the country I was born in. Because if he wins, moving elsewhere would seem like a very sane thing for me to do. Cuz fuck that noise. No. No. Trump is a fascist and when fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in gold and a shitty toupee